Glass fiber packages are commonly manufactured by supplying molten glass to a bushing, drawing glass fibers from the bushing, and applying a size, aqueous or nonaqueous, to the fibers via an applicator roll. The sized fibers may be gathered into a strand at a gathering shoe and wound on a collet to produce a glass fiber package.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,222,344 discloses an applicator for applying a sizing composition to glass fibers. The applicator includes a driven roll which receives sizing from a passageway and applies the sizing to the surface of glass fibers which are drawn across it. Positioned just above the roll is an upper housing portion which acts as a metering blade for the sizing composition so as to keep the thickness of the sizing composition substantially uniform along the length of the roll. However, if the surface of the roll is not completely uniform or if the roll rotates in a nonconcentric manner, the layer of sizing composition along the roll surface will be nonuniform. This will also occur if the lower surface of the upper housing portion, which defines the clearance between the upper housing portion and the roll, is nonuniform. A nonuniform layer of sizing composition on the applicator roll results in a nonuniform amount of sizing composition applied to the fibers drawn across the roll.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved sizing applicator which is capable of applying a substantially uniform amount of sizing composition to glass fibers drawn across it.